Over the last year and a half, I’ve really come to appreciate how well active noise cancelling headphones can work. First, it was just when I was on the main floor, and blocking out noises from my family as I went about my work day. Now that I’ve relocated to the basement, blocking out the sound from the pipes and furnace is what allows me to focus. I’ve steadily been marking through the Anker Soundcore lineup, and recently have been spending time with the Anker Soundcore Life Q35.
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In Review: Amazfit PowerBuds Pro
Over the last few years, I’ve been fortunate to review a number of different sets of headphones and earbuds. Used to be, those were just for workouts at the gym, but now they’ve become an integral part of my morning jogs, and of course throughout the work day for getting on any number of Teams calls. One of the latest pairs to grace my desk -and ears – are the Amazfit PowerBuds Pro.
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In Review: Edifier Hecate GX Headset
If you’re looking for a pair of headphones, either for your work from home setup, listening to podcasts from your phone, or to further immerse yourself in your game, you’ve got an enormous range of options to select from. While I tend to go for wireless noise cancelling ones (like these), there are plenty of solid wired options out there as well. One we’ve been spending time with lately is the Edifier Hecate GX Headset.
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Pre-Order Alert: Urbanista Los Angeles Headphones
The crew here at Knapsack, we like our headphones. For myself, particularly, they’ve become a focus since Covid hit and working from home became a reality, and not just an occasional thing. Wired is great for fidelity, but I find it hard to beat the flexibility that wireless gives you to be able to move around and do things. The caveat there is battery life – it’s getting better, but if you’re using cans all day, they’ll run out at some point in the week. Well, that is, until the promise of the Urbanista Los Angeles came about.
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In Review: Bellari VP549 Phono Preamplifier
Phono pre-amps aren’t supposed to get in the way. Designed to simply boost the sound of vinyl recordings, these boxes sit in between your turntable and your speakers. As a vinyl-head, I’ve been exploring multiple vinyl pre-amps in order to see just what the fuss is about. I’ve almost figured it out.
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In Review: The Pro-Ject Phono Box Ultra 500
The Phono Box ultra 500 is one of the most striking — and hardest to photograph — phono products I’ve ever used. Clad in chromed metal and designed to do one thing and one thing only (make your records sound awesome), this $399 little box delivers in scads.
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The Urbanista Miami ANC headphones – now with sparkle!
Back in January, we first talked about the Urbanista Miami active noise cancelling headphones, which seemed to wrap a lot of style and tech into the headphones. Well, now there’s a new edition on the horizon, the Urbanista Miami Crystal Edition.
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Just Announced: Soundcore Life Q35 ANC Headphones
If I’ve learned one thing during this work-from-home phase of the pandemic, it’s that good headphones – particularly those with Active Noise Cancellation (aka ANC) – can really make a significant difference. To that end, I’ve been going through the Soundcore lineup, reviewing the Q20, the Q30 (and an update after a firmware release), and even had a go at their ANC earbuds, the Liberty Air 2 Pro. They’ve just released a new addition to their Life Q series – the Soundcore Life Q35.
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Now Funding: Sentien Audio
As of late, my audio world has been true wireless earbuds (for when I exercise) and over-ear ANC headphones (for while I’m working). There is another category out there for headphones that I have a bit of a fascination with – bone conduction headsets. My buddy got a pair a few years ago, and I was surprised by how well they worked. Well, now we’ve got Sentien bringing another set to your cranium.
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DALI is hitting the streets in some new finishes on their IO headphones
In the last year or so, I’ve been paying a lot more attention to headphones, particularly wireless ones that let me roam around my basement as the work day unfolds. My ears are nowhere near audiophile grade, but I still can appreciate when something is reproducing sound – and doing it well. That’s what the newest hues of the DALI IO lineup have to offer.
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